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Elevator Pitch
Is An Elevator Pitch Really That
Important ?
These days everyone is talking about Elevator Pitches.
First, for those of you who may not be familiar with this term let me explain.
An Elevator Pitch (also referred to as an Elevator Speech) is a 30-second
description of your business, product or service. It's a concise and compelling
answer to the question, 'So what do you do?'
The reason it's called an Elevator Pitch is because it should be brief enough to
deliver in the time it takes to ride a few floors on an elevator.
Any time I start hearing something talked about over and over again, I have to
ask myself, is this topic really that important or is it just that everyone's on
that band wagon right now?
When it comes to Elevator Pitches, I absolutely believe they are THAT important.
Yes, it's helpful in networking situations to be able to clearly communicate
what you do in a way that sparks interest from others.
For example, if I'm at a networking event and someone asks me what I do, I can
answer in one of two ways:
I can respond with 'I'm a marketing consultant and coach' (NOT an Elevator
Pitch, but this style of response is very typical).
Or, I can say 'I help people learn how to market their own business in 10 simple
steps' (my Elevator Pitch).
Which response is more interesting to you?
Which one would be more likely to prompt further conversation? Well, I've tested
both and the second one wins hands-down every time.
So that's one reason I believe having a clear, concise Elevator Pitch is
important. It will generate more interest in you and your business among people
you meet and when you're networking, that's key.
But there's another reason I believe having a strong Elevator Pitch is important
and it far outweighs reason number one.
If you have a clear, concise Elevator Pitch that communicates the benefit of the
products or services you provide, you're much more likely to have marketing that
does the same.
However, if you can't sum up what you do in a clear, focused Elevator Pitch,
there's a good chance your marketing message is not focused and clear either.
And, if your marketing message is not focused and clear, odds are it's not as
effective as it could be. That means it's not attracting as many prospects or
clients as it could be.
And as you may have realized, it costs just as much to put out an ineffective
marketing message as an effective one.
It just takes a little more time and attention upfront to create an effective
message.
When I work with clients, developing a powerful Elevator Pitch and Key Marketing
Message are two of the tasks they struggle with the most, yet I believe they are
the two most important tasks you have as a marketer.
Because even if you have the greatest product or service in the world, if you
can't communicate that greatness effectively you won't attract clients or make
sales.
So, I challenge you to sit down, review your Elevator Pitch and ask yourself
these three questions:
1) Is it Clear?
2) Is it Concise?
3) Is it Compelling?
Then measure your marketing message the same way.
If they don't pass the test, I encourage you to do whatever it takes to make
them Clear, Concise and Compelling.
Your Elevator Pitch and your Key Marketing Message are the foundation for your
marketing and your business success depends on them.
Crafting Your Elevator Pitch
You probably know what an “elevator pitch” does, but do you own one that
describes your business, yet? If not, let’s create one, right now. It’s easy if
you know how.
Crafting an elevator pitch requires planning. Not only do you need to know your
business, but also more importantly, you need to know your target market.
Who Is Your Target Market and What Should You Say to Them?
Identifying Your Niche – First you need to identify your target market. Who are
they and where do they exist? The clearer you can identify, the more effective
your service or product can serve that population.
Be as specific as possible and find a niche that you can dominate. If you are a
doctor, you will most definitely make more money being a heart surgeon than a
family practitioner.
Although you can serve larger audience by being a family practitioner in your
city, if you happen to be the only doctor who can handle heart surgery, you can
collect premium fee for your service.
It’s better to be "number one" in a small niche than "number five" in a
saturated market. Think about Xerox; they dominate the copy machine niche but
not so in the printer niche.
When crafting an effective elevator pitch, think big but serve small. Don’t try
to sell your product or service to everyone because you only then become a
generalist and not specialist.
Crafting Your Message — This part explains why people should hire you. Focus
your message on your customers instead of yourself.
How do you do this? You do this by identifying what problem your products and
services can solve.
For example, if you sell cars, don’t advertise that you are the “the leader and
number one dealership in … “.
This means nothing to your customers because your message focuses on yourself
instead of their needs.
Instead, you can say that your dealership “helps people with credit challenge
qualify for cars.”
You see the difference? Focus on your customers’ needs instead of your
self-serving interest.
If someone wants to know what my business does, I tell the person “my consulting
provides small business owners ideas to advertise, market and create identity.”
Typically, this elevator pitch gives my potential customer the opportunity to
further investigate my credibility by asking me to demonstrate specific
examples.
The more specific I can articulate, demonstrate, explain, compare, persuade why
I should do what I do, the greater that my message educates my customers about
the advantage I bring.
An elevator pitch … is really your unique selling proposition. A 30 second
message that focuses on the needs of your niche that will not only identify your
business and but also recognize your expertise.
Spend time crafting an effective elevator pitch and outdo your competition.
How's Your Elevator Pitch ?
One of the first and most important professional communication techniques I was
taught in business was the importance of developing an “Elevator Pitch”…a very
short statement describing what it is that you do. In fifty words or less (about
30 – 45 seconds) you should be able to communicate who you are, what you do, who
you do it for and how people benefit from what you do.
What I have come to realize over the years, is that while even the most novice
of sales people tend to have an elevator pitch, very few people have adopted the
practice. Moreover, most of the elevator pitches that I hear are not very
effective and have obviously not been refined to the point of becoming a
strategic advantage. In fact many times even if the professional has developed
an elevator pitch, they don’t use it.
It’s almost as if there is some unwritten rule that once you’ve achieved a
certain station in life that you can ignore the basic fundamentals of good
business and coast along resting solely on your laurels…It is the people that
subscribe to this theory that seem to fall the farthest, fastest and hardest…I
would strongly recommend that wherever you are in your career that you always
pay attention to the basics that made you the successful person that you are
today.
I believe so strongly in the value of a good elevator pitch that I have
developed nearly 20 different variations which allow for their appropriate use
based on environment, audience, need, service line, time availability, context,
and situation. This gives me the ability to make a quick assessment of the
situation at hand and to put my proverbial “best foot forward.”
A well crafted elevator pitch will allow you to introduce yourself with
credibility that engenders confidence while you are communicating a strong
benefit statement that addresses a fear, need or potential painful situation…Put
simply, it sets the hook.
Here is the technique that I use and that I teach to my clients:
My name is (name, title, company) I specialize in assisting (target audience)
with (value proposition). This can normally be done in fifty words or less (if
the introduction has already been made with significantly fewer words) which can
then be followed up by a short example of how you can help someone achieve their
goal, overcome their fear or avoid a painful situation…
Following are a few examples of my elevator pitches:
Version 1: This is my informal version that I use when the introduction has
already been made and I’m asked what I do for a living…“I help people align
their energies and efforts with their passions because it’s simply been my
experience that most people’s daily actions are not in true alignment with their
goals.” 30 words…
Version 2: “My name is Mike Myatt. I’m the managing director at N2growth and we
specialize in helping executives build a dominant personal brand so that they
can achieve both increased job security and maximize earnings ability.” 35
words…
Version 3: “My name is Mike Myatt. I’m the managing director at N2growth and we
specialize in helping executives who are not happy with their current situation
by serving as a catalyst for positive change and growth.” 35 words…
Version 4: “My name is Mike Myatt. I’m the managing director at N2growth and we
specialize in assisting C-suite executives and entrepreneurs with growing their
revenue, their talent and their brand.” 29 words…
Version 5: “My name is Mike Myatt. I’m the managing director at N2growth and we
specialize in taking executives who are spread too thin and show them how to
regain control by maximizing their impact and leveraging their resources.” 37
words…
Each of the elevator pitches above has a short story that provides an example in
support the statement made and demonstrates how we’ve been successful at
achieving the desired outcome with others.
A good elevator pitch can be used as a personal or corporate branding tool that
can serve you well in both business and social environments. It can serve as an
introduction or calling card, an ice-breaker or attention grabber, the lead-in
to a sales presentation, VC or private equity pitch, a networking tool or a
myriad of other beneficial applications.
Create your elevator pitch today…then practice it, never stop refining it, and
most importantly, use it frequently.
top ...
Is An Elevator Pitch Really
That Important ? (C) Copyright 2006 Debbie LaChusa. Debbie LaChusa created The
10stepmarketing System to make marketing your own business as simple as
answering 10 questions. Learn more about this unique, step-by-step system and
get a free 10-week Marketing E-Course when you subscribe to the free, weekly
10stepmarketing Ezine at http://www.10stepmarketing.com
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Debbie_LaChusa
Crafting Your Elevator Pitch Takuya Hikichi Writes Small Business Marketing
Tips. Subscribe to His Blog at http://www.AskTak.com
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Takuya_Hikichi
How's Your Elevator Pitch ? Mike Myatt is the Chief Strategy Officer at
N2growth. N2growth is a leading venture growth consultancy providing a unique
array of professional services to high growth companies on a venture based
business model. The rare combination of branding and corporate identity
services, capital formation assistance, market research and business
intelligence, sales and product engineering, leadership development and talent
management, as well as marketing, advertising and public relations services make
N2growth the industry leader in strategic growth consulting. More information
about the company can be found at http://www.N2growth.com
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Mike_Myatt
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